Belly Up

Saints Pub is a +

By Chris Kelley

5/28/2014

As the weather gets warmer, there’s more and more reason to get outside and enjoy the fresh air. In West Des Moines, bar-goers and foodies alike spend their outdoor hours enjoying an all-day happy hour and daily food specials at Saints Pub + Patio, which has a similar sister location in Beaverdale, as well as three other locations in Kansas, one in Missouri and another in Nebraska.

At the West Des Moines location, which opened in 2009, a jovial staff greeted the midday regulars who were quick to find what were obviously their favorite spots in the relaxed bar. Couples mingled in the dining area, enjoying the Thursday steak sandwich special like it was a common routine.

West Des Moines sports hub offers a full menu, more than 20 large flat-screen TVs and a large covered patio served by a separate bar for loungers’ convenience.

“The crowd here is very chill, no matter what time,” said a perky bartender named Stacey Hoopes while mixing a cocktail. “Every chair can be completely full, but everybody’s kicking back and relaxing.

“We have an all-day happy hour until 6 (p.m.) that starts back up again at 10,” Hoopes said. “It’s a pretty good deal.”

Good deals are what draw in the regulars. The specials are so irresistible, in fact, a noontime cocktail never seems so tempting, which might explain why, even over the lunch-hour, the majority of the customers were gathered at the bar.

It’s 5 o’clock somewhere, right?

“It’s a great place to have a mid-afternoon drink without feeling guilty,” said one customer enjoying the early happy hour, who, despite his innocence, still wouldn’t give up his name. “Who can say ‘no’ to the best happy hour in Des Moines?”

But Saints is a perfectly viable lunch stop regardless of libations, as the menu touts a variety of signature specials such as the pretzel-bun burger and the jerk chicken egg rolls, which Hoopes said are hand-rolled in the kitchen every morning.